在《约拿书》的第四章中，(约拿书4)，先知约拿对他的成功有一个奇怪的反应。他很生气，而且生闷气。他认为自己比上帝更了解。这个故事是关于什么的？

乔治-麦考迪牧师在注释这一章时，在他的《约拿书学习指南》中提供了一个总结，该指南有免费的.pdf版本，供你使用。下面，我们摘录了他的部分总结，并进行了编辑，以便在此背景下使用。

约拿时代的犹太教会的人不想重新考虑他们对 "最惠国待遇 "的信念。他们向主挑战。他们不明白为什么主想拯救他们在尼尼微的敌人。

尽管有第1章和第2章的惨痛教训，以及第3章所述的成功，约拿仍然认为自己比主更了解。他认为神太软弱和慈爱了，太宽容了，他需要接受约拿的强硬观点。

约拿变得如此愤怒和报复，以至于他宁愿死也不同意主拯救尼尼微人的方式。他的自爱希望得到荫庇--对其概念的保护。主需要结束这种想法；虫子从内部给葫芦带来了死亡。然后，主派人吹了一阵猛烈的东风，这代表着吹走了教会停滞不前的思维。

主的天日照在约拿身上，但他感到昏厥。在这里，约拿坚持自己对事物的困扰的看法，使他对主的看法感到不舒服。神圣的指引为他提供了一种方法，让他学会把邻居的成功当作自己的成功来享受，但他不愿意接受。

对我们来说，那么--什么？这个故事告诉我们，我们不能只为自己保留圣言的真理；我们必须到尼尼微去分享它们。然后，如果人们开始听到它们，并利用它们来改变他们的生活，我们就不能允许自己对主接受他们的悔改并宽恕他们而产生怨恨。这是一个非常人性化的反应；想想门徒们在主的指挥结构中争先恐后的样子(路加福音9:46)，或者浪子的兄弟(路加福音15:28-29)，或葡萄园里的工人为了一个银币整天工作(马太福音20:10-12).但是...这不是一个好的反应。主不欣赏约拿的这种反应，当它出现在我们的头脑中时，也不欣赏它。

马丁-潘宁顿牧师推荐了瑞典堡神学著作中的几段解释性段落。

"阴暗或阴影意味着对善和真理的认识处于朦胧状态"。(天国的秘密2367)

"葡萄树是属灵的好处（属灵的教会）"。(天国的秘密217)

"虫子代表虚假的东西在啃噬和折磨人"。(天国的秘密8481)

"'太阳渐渐热起来'在相反的意义上意味着自爱和对世界的爱"。(天国的秘密8487)

还有......这里有一个链接，是托德-贝斯文格牧师关于本章的有趣（音频）布道。

588. The Lord is referred to as repenting and grieving in heart however because all human mercy seems to involve those feelings. Consequently as is the case many times elsewhere in the Word, the manner of speaking here is in accordance with the outward appearance. Nobody can know what the Lord's mercy is, for it infinitely transcends all human understanding. But one does know what human mercy is; it is repenting and grieving. And unless a person grasps the idea of mercy from some different feeling whose nature he knows, he can have no possible conception of it and so cannot learn anything about it. This is the reason why human characteristics are frequently attributed to Jehovah, or the Lord - for example, that Jehovah or the Lord punishes, leads into temptation, destroys, and burns with anger, when in fact He never punishes anybody, never leads anybody into temptation, never destroys anybody, and never burns with anger. Now seeing that such things are attributed to the Lord, repentance and grief may be attributed as well, for the attribution of the one follows on from that of the other, as is quite clear from the following places in the Word:

[2] In Ezekiel,

My anger will be accomplished, I will make My wrath die down again, and I will repent. Ezekiel 5:13.

Here, because 'anger' and 'wrath' are attributed to Him, 'repenting' is attributed as well. In Zechariah,

As I thought to do Evil when your fathers provoked Me to anger, said Jehovah Zebaoth, and I did not repent, so again I will think in these days to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. Zechariah 8:14-15.

Here it is said that Jehovah 'thought to do evil', when in fact He never thinks to do evil to anyone, but good to every single human being. And when Moses sought to placate the face ¹ of Jehovah, Turn from the heat of Your anger, and repent over the evil of Your people. And Jehovah repented over the evil which He said He would do to His people. Exodus 32:12, 14.

Here also the heat of anger, and consequently repentance, is ascribed to Jehovah. In Jonah,

The king of Ninevah [said], Who knows, God may turn and repent, and turn from the heat of His anger, and we shall not perish! Jonah 3:9.

Here similarly 'repentance' is attributed to Him because 'anger' is also.

[3] In Hosea,

My heart has turned within Me, and at the same time My repentings have been kindled; I will not execute the heat of My anger. Hosea 11:8-9.

Here 'repentings having been kindled', said of the heart, is similar in meaning to 'He was grieved in heart'. 'Repentings' clearly stands for abundant mercy. Similarly in Joel,

Return to Jehovah your God, for He is gracious and merciful, long-suffering, abounding in mercy, and repenting of evil. Joel 2:13.

Here again 'repenting' quite clearly means mercy. In Jeremiah,

It may be they will listen and every man turn from his evil way, that I may repent of the evil. Jeremiah 26:3.

'Repent' stands for having mercy. In the same prophet,

If that nation turns from its evil, I will repent of the evil. Jeremiah 18:8.

Here also 'repenting' stands for having mercy on them if only they would turn back, for it is man who turns the Lord's mercy away from himself. It is never the Lord who turns it away from man.

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